+ What is your name?

Amina M.

+ Where are you located?

Canada

+ Are you submitting as a team or individual?

Individual submission

+ In one sentence, tell us about your idea.

Through our charity Cameras For Girls we teach photography and business skills to young women, endeavouring to become journalists in a 3-phase program. Through our tour company (Triple F Photo Tours) we lead photography tours which helps fund Camera For Girls by giving 10% of revenues to the cause.

+ My ideal collaborative partner or partners would be...?

Looking to connect with a university in Tanzania and South Africa with a journalism program that can help us bring our tours and training to their country.

+ What is it about your idea that makes you feel good?

Through our charitable side we have made an impact in the lives of 32 young women so far ( we were halted due to COVID) and through our for-profit, we are helping people not only experience the beauty of the various destinations we travel to but we are helping them improve their photography with hands-on instruction so that they can get the photos they want on a once-in-a-lifetime trip. We are also a sustainable tourism company that stays local, eats local and supports the local economy in the various places we travel to.

+ What makes your idea innovative? Why has no one ever done it before?

There are very few travel companies that have integrated a non-profit into their model and I believe that most don't do it because they simply did not realize it was an option. I think when you travel you need to always keep the impact on the local economy in mind. I also think that most photo tour companies are only interested in showing their travellers the beautiful sites. Rarely do they venture off-the-beaten-path or integrate their tours with the local community, which in my opinion is where the heart of travel lies.

+ Who will benefit the most from your idea?

Both our students in the Cameras For Girls program and our travellers benefit. In the CFG program we give each female student a camera to keep and the training to use it to get paid work. We work with the themes of gender equality, female empowerment and alleviation of poverty. With our photo tours, our travellers benefit because they see the direct impact their travel dollars make in changing the life of a local girl in Africa.

+ Ideally, when would you launch this idea?

I've already launched my idea

+ Indicate which UN goals your idea relates to?

Gender Equality Quality Education No Poverty Reduced Inequality Partnerships to achieve the Goal

+ At Sigmund, we are interested in ideas at the intersection of People, Planet, and Profit. How does your idea relate to these three categories?

At the base of our company and chartiy it's all about people. While we are very interested of course in turning a profit, it cannot come at the expense of people and what they need to live in equality. There is much inequality in this world, and having come from Uganda myself and now living and growing up in Canada, I see the inequality both in people and in gender, and I am out to make a difference.

+ If you have a website for your idea, please enter the URL below.

www.camerasforgirls.org

www.triplefphototours.ca